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* FTSE 100 up 0.6%, FTSE 250 up 0.7%
* Financials, miners lead gains
* GMS drops after delaying results
(Adds company news items, analyst comment, updates share moves)
By Muvija M and Shashwat Awasthi
Sept 11 (Reuters) - UK blue-chips edged higher on Wednesday,
buoyed by hopes of monetary stimulus from central banks as
economic growth slows because of a protracted U.S.-China trade
war, while signs of a thaw in the dispute provided some relief
to investors.
The FTSE 100 was 0.6% higher by 0756 GMT, while the
midcap index rose 0.7%.
Asia-facing financials and mining heavyweights
were powering gains for the main bourse after a report said
China will introduce important measures to ease the negative
impact of the trade war with United States.
The European Central Bank is widely expected to cut interest
rates in this week's policy meeting, while the U.S. Federal
Reserve is seen following suit next week as a stretch of weak
economic data have stoked fears of a recession.
"I wonder whether investors have positioned themselves to be
disappointed," Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said in relation to
some aspects of an expected stimulus plan from the ECB.
Some news working in favour of multinational stocks was a
move from China to exempt 16 types of U.S. products from
additional retaliatory tariffs.
Consumer goods giant Unilever and the world's
biggest spirits company Diageo, which pocket a major
chunk of their earnings in U.S. dollars, inched down as sterling
rose ahead of a speech from opposition party deputy leader Tom
Watson.
He is expected to demand that the Labour Party campaign
against Brexit and push for a referendum to reverse the planned
departure before any election.
While weakness in the pound helped the main index notch
back-to-back gains in June and July, the local currency has
recovered in recent weeks as parliament took steps to prevent a
chaotic no-deal Brexit.
In results-driven gains, Galliford Try, which this
week said it has restarted talks to sell its housing units to
Bovis Homes, rose 2.1% after reporting strong margins at
Linden Homes despite Brexit-induced weakness in the market.
Smaller companies recorded some sharp moves, with Capital &
Regional jumping 7% after the company said Growthpoint
Properties was in talks to buy a majority stake, and Gulf Marine
Services plunging 12.6% to a life low after delaying
results.
Pharma services provider Consort Medical fell 4.2%
after saying it expected a bigger-than-expected hit to its
annual operating profit from a chemical incident at its
Cramlington facility.
(Reporting by Muvija M and Shashwat Awasthi in Bengaluru;
Editing by Arun Koyyur, Bernard Orr)
